Fire and Ice and Other Things
by Lawliet Veneziano
Summary: Once upon there was a kingdom where a thief, a banished prince, a strange orphan and a host of other people lived. And they all met. Oh god help us all.    A Naruto AU. Possible pairings later that I have no idea about right now. xD
1. Wings and the Like

Note: This story is set in a kingdom called Hinote, it means flames, in a medieval sort of way. In it, my made-up Naruki is a young thiefress, leader of a very well-known thieves guild called the Black Moon, though that's all I'll tell you for now!

Chapter One: Wings and the Like

Naruki hated to wait, though that was exactly what she was doing. It was probably 90 degrees outside and her comrades were all out on missions. That was why she, the leader of the Black Moon, the most notorious thieves guild in all of Hinote and the adjoining kingdoms, was out waiting for a customer.

It was late fall, so she couldn't figure why it was so hot. The hot days of summer had long since passed, leaving only cool breezes usually, not a soldering day like today. Everyone in the village of Konoha were already wearing winter clothes, even Naruki who usually wore her summer garbs all-year round. This outfit consisted of a long black cloak, mandatory for a thief of course, under which was long dark pants and a long-sleeve midnight blue shirt. She wore a necklace around her neck, a family heirloom of hers, an amethyst that glowed in even low light. Her black bag was enchanted to look empty but she of course held all sorts of things in it, from lock picks to the rarely used, but one day could be useful, invisible cloak which she'd stolen from an old nobleman.

She had been waiting for quite a while when a strange man came up to her. He wore a black hood over his face so she couldn't see it, but she knew either way. There wasn't a fragment of doubt in her mind who it was.

"Hello," she said as unemotional and patiently as she could attempt.

"Good morning." The voice under the hood was mean and cold, though she could feel this other emotion coming off them. Sorrow, anguish, it was so powerful, it scared her. As always, her ability to sense emotions had caused more than a little trouble for her.

"So, are you going to show your face to me or not?" she asked with a hint of sarcasm and amusement.

The hooded one laughed, apparently as amused as she was. They pulled off their hood. It was a boy, about her age, with black hair that was styled into three points going sideways. He had onyx-like eyes, cold and distant from her, definitely not matching the smile he had on his face, though it wasn't all that sweet and kind either. He reminded her of someone, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

"So, what's your name?" she asked, realized finally she hadn't gotten the name before leaving the hideout.

The boy's face went dim, then he said, "Sasuke."

"Got a last name to go with that?"

"None of your business."

She smirked, stifling a laugh, "Ooooo, touchy."

Sasuke just smirked back at her, "You know it."

Although she knew he was playing with her, who knew why or who gave him the right to, it didn't stop her from going red in the face, though only for a few moments before putting back on her trademark playful but dangerous smile, "I wish I did. Anyway, why did you call me out here anyway?"

Once again, Sasukes face went dim, but before he could tell her anything, Naruki heard something she didn't like, footsteps, footsteps that happened to be being made by people in armor. She cursed under her breath and grabbed Sasuke by the collar of his cloak," Come on!"

She leapt up onto the roof of the building she'd been leaning against in a single graceful movement, putting him down right beside her. The two watched as a group of what looked like knights came by, all wearing the same black armor and all looking around in different directions, "Where is she?"

"Damn, it's the Anaki," she said annoyed," Just my luck."

She stood up, scratched the back of her head, then looked at him, "Come on then, I'll take you to my house, we'll talk there."

Naruki held out a hand to him and after only a second of thought he took it, then the two were off, only blurs.

Veneziano: This is one of my oldest Naruto fanfictions and I just realized last night I never uploaded it to so I'm fixing that now. ^x^ Enjoy!


	2. A dark shadow appears but not to anyone

Chapter two: A dark shadow appears(though not to Naruki or Sasuke)

The two arrived in one of the most remote and deserted parts of Konoha. Sasuke looked around, expecting the notorious Black Moon to have their hideout somewhere better, though he knew this was exactly what was to really be expected. Naruki led him into an old abandoned hotel.

Once inside Sasuke noticed that it wasn't as old or broken down as it had looked outside. The stairs that lead upstairs looked newly redone; the check-in counter looked cleaned. Everything looked in perfect order, surprisingly.

"What the-"he was about to say but Naruki shushed him, then pulled him upstairs and into a room. Once inside she looked the door and finally breathed. He looked around the room.

One bed, a nightstand with a lamp, maps on the walls, books on the ground, closet, black lacquer box on table, it seemed like the room of a thief to him.

"Damn those Anaki," Naruki said," Why can't they go find someone else to bug for once?"

"Don't get along with the local knights, I see," he said, sitting down on the bed.

Naruki glared at him, "Of course not. I'm the leader of Black Moon, the most notorious thieves' guild in the entire world. I've got a sizable bounty on my head. The Anaki are all greedy idiots who pretend to protect the peace while really being so corrupt, it's a laugh."

Sasuke smiled, but only slightly as she walked over to him. She sat on the table, "so, Sasuke, tell me something: Why did you call me out?"

He stared at her for a while, though whether he was contemplating telling the truth or a lie was unknown. He stood up, smoothing out the wrinkles on his cloak, "I have a job for you."

"Oh, really?" Naruki said, eyebrow raised, her voice now dripping with sarcasm.

He looked at her in annoyance, not glaring as she had done before, but still not too pleasantly. He walked over to her and picked up the black box.

"Yes, really," Sasuke said, about to open the box.

She put her hand on the top of the box and closed it gently, eyes locked with his, "Well, what's this mission then?"

"I want you to steal something for me, a special blade made by the famous swordsmith Sarutobi."

"Sarutobi? THE Sarutobi, the master swordsmith that once was considered the greatest of the greats?"

"Yes."

"So where is it?" Naruki asked skeptically. She didn't know why, but something didn't sound right to her.

He hesitated, proving her right, and then said, "The royal treasury."

She stared at him, confused and appalled, "You're…..joking…right?"

"No," Sasuke said, surprised that she seemed so worried by that, "Is there a problem?"

"Well, yeah. You actually honestly want me to go into the palace, sneak by the guards and such into the treasury and steal back a sword?"

He nodded and both were silent for a while. Then, Naruki burst out laughing and he just became even more confused, "Fine, I'll be glad to, it'll be fun, a challenge."

Sasuke looked at her in confusion, surprised and yet not surprised by the thief's answer. He sighed shaking his head,. He grabbed a map from off the wall, the map of the royal castle, "Whatever, okay, so here's the plan…"

"Lord Kaidan! Lord Kaidan! There's a messenger hawk for you!" It had been quiet in Kurai Castle, the royal home in the kingdom of Kurorei. Kaidan, lord and master of all the dark lands and probably the grouchiest boy in the world, had been attempting a nap in his throne when one of his lower subjects barged into the throne room. Wrong move.

After about a hour of tormented screams and one missing destroyed man later, Kaidan was reading the message, the look on his face as unemotional and hard to read as ever. He finished reading and looked up to see another person, a calm man watching him.

"Well?" Kaidan said.

"Well what, milord?" the boy asked.

"Where is the survivor?"

"Intelligence states in the kingdom of Hinote."

"Hinote, eh?"

Kaidan sat back and closed his eyes, a cruel evil smile creeping upon his face. The boy stood there patiently as Kaidan then said, so softly it was almost inaudible, "Good…very good…"

"….Okay, sounds good," Naruki said after Sasuke finished explaining.

She stood up straight and stretched, smiling to herself like a jester who had pleased a grumpy king. He watched her carefully.

She stopped and looked at him, seeing him stare at her. She laughed, "What, Sasuke, got a crush on me already? Well now isn't the time for that. I need you to do some things for me before the mission."

"And those would be?" Sasuke asked.

"Oh you'll see soon enough," she said no longer laughing, but smiling to herself.

Veneziano: The second chapter. Naruki and Sasuke are getting along well aren't they? and who is Kaiden really? You'll find out later!


End file.
